Galena (User)
Galena, also known by her Wikia username Technicallytyphlosion, is the creator of Galena's Wiki of Shadows. She considers herself eclectic and infrequent, feeling a pull toward the Egyptian pantheon and the concept of monism, but not actually practicing anything all that much. Despite this, she loves to read about those who actively involve themselves in their craft and beliefs. She lives in the Central Plains of Kansas with 10+ guppies and a crayfish. Discovering Paganism Before her formal introduction to neopaganism, Galena learned about ancient pantheons via Age of Mythology, a PC title in which one commands an army accompanied by monsters and blessed by gods. She was particularly interested in the Ancient Egyptian deities, particularly Anubis. Being 10 year old and previously having no religious experience, the extent of her interaction with the gods was a) buying a keychain with a German Shepherd on it to honor Anubis and b) angrily writing to Bast about someone running over a cat and offering her cat kibble. In the present day, Galena hopes Bast is not still angry at her for offering Meow Mix in her youth. She was first formally introduced to the concept of modern paganism in middle school. Her interests at the time included zombies and other "spooky" things, which caught the attention of the new girl in her class. This new girl (we'll call her Artemis) would become her best friend through junior high and part of high school, as well as her introduction to real witches. Artemis, her mother, and her little sister all identified themselves as Wiccans, though what specific tradition is unknown. Artemis didn't talk a whole lot about it, but she mentioned the goddess occasionally and their sabbat celebrations. She was also adamant that she was psychic and could see into others' past lives. According to her, she and Galena had first crossed paths during the witch trials, where Artemis was a practitioner and Galena her mundane friend. She also told Galena that she had been a Jewish man during the Third Reich and was gunned down after he resorted to stealing food to feed himself while hiding in the woods. From here, Galena was not drawn into witchcraft or paganism again until college, when she discovered Kemetic Reconstructionism. This was when she was most active in her practices, setting up three altars (elemental, Akhu/ancestral, and Netjeru/gods), attempting to communicate and leave offerings somewhat regularly with the gods (and feeling a connection with Sekhmet, Hethert/Hathor, Djehuty/Thoth, and Heru-sa-Aset/Horus the Younger), and using semiprecious stones, meditation, and heka/verbal magic as a form of witchcraft. For whatever reason, she fell out of this. Currently, after having gone through an intense, questionably valid spiritual experience regarding Mono (perhaps more commonly known as the Star Goddess) and an excruciating life crisis regarding death, Galena is again very much interested in paganism and witchcraft, though she's currently looking at all that neopaganism has to offer. She hopes she can someday reconnect with Sekhmet/Hethert, who left a strong yet comforting impression on her. Other Things Galena spends a good chunk of her time on the Internet, so she's accumulated quite the list of interests. She has particular fondness for most electronica and metal subgenres as well as some pop and classical. Her favorite artists are Rammstein, Schacht, Lindemann, Tool, and Lady Gaga. While she hasn't listened to enough of their self to feel comfortable saying she's an actual fan, she also likes Nightwish, hyi, Green Day, the Cranberries, Nirvana, System of a Down, Emigrate, and Gojira. She also likes Pokémon, horror stories and movies (especially the anecdotal ones), YouTube (some favorite 'Tubers are Chadtronic, Reignbot, Kurtis Conner, MichaelLeroi, h3h3Productions, SootHouse, Night Mind, Azura DragonFaether, Phelan Porteous/Phelous, shane, TheUnknownCameraman, and brutalmoose), podcasts (esp. Welcome to Night Vale, Cults and Mythology by Parcast, and Millennial Pagan Podcast), books (horror and fantasy are her favorites), and just about anything that has to do with dragons or demons. You can chat directly with her via her Discord: 7OuncesofSand#7673